This is a perfect example of a fantastic psychological thriller and what it should be EXCEPT for one thing which I will get too.

So things I like, it really really kept me on my toys and the story itself was good. I don't want to rehash it because the author does it so much better on the blurb.

The other thing, this is the first book I have read where I am actually wondering what will happen to characters who I find so unlikeable. These are some of the most toxic friendships I have ever read about in a book. Usually when a book has characters like this, I tend to not be able to finish the book because I really don't care. about them. Here it was different. I didn't like them, BUT I was still invested in what happened to them!

Thank you so much to #NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Big thanks to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for a review!

Wow, what a lush experience. The Things We Do To Our Friends has such wonderful prose that binds to the inherent rot of this story to make a beautifully unique experience. The setting completely drew me in.
Clare was a hypnotic protagonist. Despite it not being a secret that she’s a bad person, just like many disturbed individuals in real life, I found myself manipulated into rooting for her.
The only complaint I have is that the ending was a little confusing. I felt everything was tied up and I wasn’t left with questions, but I wondered why things ended up the way they did. Maybe that’s part of the appeal.
This was my first dark academia book, and it was exactly what I’d hoped for. I definitely recommend this book for anyone interested!

𝑰 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒍𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆, 𝒕𝒐 𝒘𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒕 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒅𝒆𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒅 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒆.

Claire arrives in Edinburgh, Scotland hungry for a fresh start. It’s university, what better place to begin anew? Believing the past can be wiped clean living in the shadowy Old Town, the plan is become someone else but “I needed the right people around me for that.” Her flatmates are too earnest, and we learn that no one is going to share her upbringing, a sign that there may be a reason why she has such a hard time fitting in and making friends, that there is something hidden in her past that makes her so ‘different’. They can’t help her in her quest to change, she is on the hunt for people who aren’t desperate and does everything she can to avoid being home. Though she has insecurities, she is discerning when it comes to other’s weaknesses. A job working at a local bar is the first step and where she is noticed by the beautiful, wealthy Tabitha and Imogen, classmates from her Art History course she labeled “The Shiver”. It isn’t long after that night in the bar before Claire is invited into their exclusive circle. Tabitha is perfection, everyone else is desperate to be in close proximity to her “chaotic energy” and shine. Imogen is her pet, the ‘follower’, and they soon become a threesome. She is invited to their lavish flat in the beautiful, ‘monied’ side of town where she meets the others- Ava, and Samuel. They all grew up together in the south and, naturally, followed each other to school. This is the night she delights in discovering she is Tabitha’s type and someone she would love to have around all the time. Her boss Finn doesn’t like them, feels they are ‘off’, this only makes the group that much more desirable. Claire’s past is a puzzle for the reader, we get the stilted conversations with her grandmother back in Hull and understand her parents are distant from her, but not why. It’s enough to know something is off about her too and her mind has a habit of bending to negative thoughts.

It thrills Claire to be one of them, even if she is insecure, always on edge early on, and in time they seek her out individually. She craves time with them, stores every revelation they let slip about themselves. She aches, feeling like she is an outsider and never fully privy to their shared history, but she improves under Tabitha’s generous hand. When she discovers they chose her carefully for their own purposes, she is proud rather than disturbed. Finally, she has found her people, who care about her, and think she is someone special. With their easy wealth, glittering world and magnetic life force, there is no place she’d rather be. Why is she so desperate for acceptance and love?

Tabitha wants to enlist Claire in a mysterious business project, she explains the details by inviting her home for vacation in France. Claire gains deeper access into her world. She even gets to meet Minta, Tabitha’s mother, but the plan leaves Claire’s own troubled past exposed. As the things she concealed about herself are being skinned off her new identity, she is naked and raw, in the clutches of “The Shiver.” Why, then, with her fresh, new start at stake is there pleasure in doing what Tabitha wants? Will she refuse? Life takes a sinister turn, but darkness may be a friend to Claire. They have their secrets, they have studied her, but in turn she has studied them and there are corners of her life that she has kept from their hungry eyes. Just what are the things we do to our friends, and what do our friends do to us?

It’s a twisted tale about power and the seduction of belonging. It is also about the fragility of identity. An interesting, dark thriller that kept me reading. I was intrigued and repelled by Claire. What an interesting tale.

Published January 10, 2023

Random House

Ballantine

Bantam

First off, thank you to NetGalley, the publishers and author for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book could be described as an atmospheric thriller, but with undertones of what women do to each other, what we know about our friends and ourselves, and how far we will go to be accepted.

In all honesty, the middle of this book DRAGGED on and I really struggled to push through. It felt like a lot of build up for a pretty predictable “twist” ending. I did like the unreliability of all the characters, and I enjoyed the more exciting plot points, but I felt like the characters all sat around Tabitha’s flat being pretentious for like 2/3 of the book and I wanted them all to stop talking about how special they were. Maybe that was part of the point, but it didn’t land how I wanted it to.

Also, why was Finn even a character? Why didn’t we learn anything about the dynamic with Granny beyond two short chapters about Christmas? It somehow felt like the book was too short and too long. It was a good concept, but predictable.

I didn’t finish The Things We Do to Our Friends. I tried. But the story just kind of dragged on. Foreshadowing what was to come, yet nothing really happened. Our narrator is Clare and she sounded as unreliable and unlikable as all the characters introduced.

The only thing I enjoyed was the location and it made me want to visit Edinburgh.

A miss for me, but probably would be better liked by those more into the “outcast joins the cool kids” trope.

Thank you to Random House and Netgalley for my review copy.

When we first meet Clare, I feel sorry for her. She is new at University and is dying to meet friends. Now, that doesn’t mean she’ll be friends with just anyone, and she makes that clear. But really, a girl has to be discerning, right? Fall in with the wrong crowd and it can be social suicide…or worse!

Luckily, she secures friendships with a circle that is extremely exclusive and sophisticated. Most of the group has money, or at least comes from the type of money that allows for a summer home, even if it’s not fully staffed. But when it comes out that Clare may not have been the one who picked them, it gets interesting.

The Things We Do For Our Friends is a twisty tale with definitely vibes of Donna Tart’s The Secret History. Special Thanks to Netgalley and Ballantine Books for an advanced e-galley in exchange for my honest review. This one is out now and perfect for snuggling with under a blanket on a snowy day:)

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for this ARC!

This novel was not what I was expecting at all. The writing is a bit all over the place and sometimes hard to follow, but it gives the disjointed sense of time that seems to tie in the story and series of events that happens. The writing can be a bit much to get through, but it paints the character Clare in the light that I think the author was going for. Clare, Tabitha, Imogen, Ava, and Samuel are all students in Edinburgh, and seem to have formed a clique that is odd and centered around Tabitha. Not all is at it seems though within the friend group and each person starts to show their cracks more than Clare initially expected to see.
I’m going to be honest, I didn’t love this book. I can appreciate it for what it is and to show how people are not all that they portray to be, how it can be easy to be someone else if you are starting over somewhere new, but you never really lose who you are. Parts of this story dragged out too long for me. I didn’t love the characters; they all seem to be not great people and are okay to turn a blind eye to things that happen unless it’s happening to them.

(My review to my Instagram page will post on 1/31)

This was fine, nothing spectacular. It was a little too surface-level to be anything more than fine. A lot of telling, not a lot of showing. The epilogue squashed any intrigue that was there by giving it all away. I wanted more from this that just wasn’t there. That being said, it’s fine enough and I’d say read it if you so desire.

As someone who loves thrillers and dark academia, I was excited to read The Things We Do to Our Friends by Heather Darwent. Clare is drawn to the rich kids from her art history courses, but can't figure out why they've adopted her into their group. She starts to realize that they are capable of more than just regular rich-kid bullying and tricks, but at this point she's committed and into the group.

This novel started out a bit slow for me, but I found myself coming back to catch up here and there. The overall themes were creative and kept me reading to the end. I'm always thankful for my uneventful friend group when I read about these intense friendships that often end with secrets and disasters.

This story started with a bang and I was totally invested, then it slowed down and dragged until the last quarter of the book. I liked the writing but it was just too slow for my taste.

I read a review that compared this to Heathers and The Secret History.
Blasphemy!
After audibly groaning repeatedly, I had to give up.

Wow, is this a haunting and disturbing read, in all the best possible ways.

Clare moves to Edinburgh (loved the setting!) in an attempt to shake loose her past and reinvent herself. While taking classes there, she meets Tabitha and her group of friends, and is drawn into their world. When Tabitha proposes a plan she has been developing, Clare realizes she is already in too deep to say no, and what has become codependence is quickly turning dangerous.

I definitely recommend this read.

The Things We Do to Our Friends follows Clare, a lonely, poor-ish college student with a secret checkered past as she finds an “it” group on campus and gets welcomed into their fold. As she becomes closer with the Queen Bee, Tabitha, however, she finds out that the group has big plans and she’s right at the center of them.

The first 50% of this book is a lot of hinting at the big plans and hinting at the past Clare is so desperately trying to keep hidden. Then second half of the book does pick up as the plan gets executed. And the plan itself was quite interesting.

Overall, though, I’m not sure how I feel about this book. For much of it, I couldn’t put it down, but there were times when I considered moving on to something else. There is a lot of character development, which I wasn’t expecting. This is definitely a character-based novel, as the “holy shit” moments didn’t really live up to the hype of the first half of the novel for me. Its almost as if the “holy shit” plot points shouldn’t have been so hyped up. If they hadn’t been, I think I would have appreciated the slow burn of the characters changing and developing more. Ultimately, I think that’s the strong part of this novel-the relationships between all the major players.

I was intrigued by the cover and the title; both are great! Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy the writing style, and I couldn't get into this book. Thank you, NetGalley

This novel is a perverse and chilling account of girls who commit crimes and horrendous malicious acts of well planned terror. How could I possibly like it. How could I possibly recommend it. The main protagonist is a psychopath. The book centers on her and her failed family life, her acts of retribution, and her eventual emergence as a murderer. I was appalled as I read her twisted story. The writer is adept and the book is well written. However, one cannot recommend it based on the erudition or technique. In short, this is just too disturbing a topic for me.

Clare has a dark past, and is trying to reinvent herself at university. She is befriended by a wealthy group, and their antics soon turn into something far more sinister. How far is Clare willing to go, and what price will be paid?

First - that cover?! *swoon* Second, this, unfortunately, just didn’t work for me. I wasn’t a huge fan of the pacing or the timeline jumping and NONE of the characters were particularly likable. I really struggled, but when I put it down it was hard to want to pick it back up. Overall, it was just eh for me.

Mysterious, yet beautiful! Both the story and the cover share these characteristics. The Things we do to our friends is a dark academia mystery with unlikeable characters, and toxic relationships. The story started with a dark reveal and slowly tapered off to a predictable ending. The slow pace and seemingly long story line didn’t work for me. If you like slow burn, dark and complex thrillers, this might work for you.

Thank you Bantam for the arc via Netgalley.

Such a well done and amazing, engaging book. I tore through this book faster than any I think I have done recently. The story follows Clare, a young woman attending a university in Edinburgh for an arts degree. Clare meets some very clique-y and interesting individuals, who take her under their wing. But these "friends" are not like most friends are in college. They have secrets, and so does Clare. The story twisted and turned at all the right moments, and the characters were hopeless in only the way that true thriller/dark academia fiction characters can shine. This book brought to mind an updated, more female oriented, version of The Secrety History by Donna Tartt. Dark academia, dark deeds, and engaging writing? This book will be for you.

This ebook was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A propulsive novel about obsessive friendship and dangerous ambition, The Things We Do to Our Friends was intriguing from the very beginning.
This is Heather Darwent’s debut novel and she is off to an exciting start.

Clare is trying to start over. She meets Tabitha and her friends at school. Tabitha is charming, rich, and intimidating. Their friendship will reveal truths and secrets neither wanted revealed.

Thanks to NetGalley, Bantam Books and Heather Darwent for the opportunity to read and review this book.

#FirstLine ~ FRANCE -Three girls dance in front of him.

Well, I have to admit that I enjoyed this book but it did take me a bit to get into it. But once I did, it was fantastic. I would describe this as more of a slow burn story. I did like how the story unfolded and was engaged in the characters. Not everyone is likeable, but everyone is important to the story. A good book for a book club because a lot of discussion will come from reading it!